A 16-year-old Hesperia teen walked into a High Desert nail salon Wednesday morning with his hands tied behind his back and reported he had been kidnapped the day before.

Several San Bernardino County sheriff's deputies and a detective began interviewing the boy which led to the identification of a suspect. However it wasn't a frightening kidnapper who preys on children and teens who was cited Wednesday.

The Hesperia boy was cited on suspicion of making a false report when investigators learned he had allegedly made the whole thing up so he wouldn't have to go home, sheriff's officials said.

"Valuable resources were redirected today (due to this call,)" said Sue Rose, spokeswoman for the Hesperia station.

The boy walked into Fashion Nails in the 15700 block of Main Street shortly before 10 a.m. asking for help, according to sheriff's reports.

Deputies were called and began an investigation, Rose said. They soon learned the boy was allegedly upset with his parents and didn't want to go home so he concocted the kidnapping tale.

Many law enforcement agencies say dealing with false or embellished reports is something they have to deal with on a regular basis.

Last Friday 10 Pomona Police officers spent more than an hour investigating a false report of a man with a gun a the campus of Emerson Middle School, said Lt. Chuck Becker with the Pomona Police Department.

Officers later learned two 12-year-old students who did not want to return to school had told their mothers the lie during lunch in the hopes of not having to return to school, officials said. Both girls were cited for making a false report.

"This is a real problem because it does pull resources from real crimes," Becker said.

A recent FBI report shows some California agencies have seen cuts due to budgetary cuts meaning already strained resources are stretched further when a false report has to be investigated.

From 2008 to 2011, Pomona lost nearly 21 percent of their officers going from 187 to 148. During that same time frame, San Bernardino County Sheriff's lost about 60 deputies in the department's coverage area, the data shows. San Bernardino Police lost nearly 50 officers. A drop of almost 14 percent.

This year alone the Hesperia station has investigated two reports verified to be false, Rose said but said sometimes it's difficult to confirm a call is indeed fake.

"It's tough to track false crimes because we have to investigate all reported crimes," she said. "We get lots or reports of crimes which turn out false but we still (investigate) and forward the findings to the (District Attorney's Office.)"

After that, if the DA's office determines the person made false statements, charges may be filed against the person making the report. Filing a false report is a misdemeanor and can be punishable by imprisonment in the county jail for up to one year and a fine up to $1,000.

But according to both Rose and Becker, the problem isn't just phony reports from kids trying to get out of school, they also see people embellishing legitimate reports in the hopes to get officers to their scene faster.

"Unfortunately it's common to hear from people someone has a gun in the hopes of getting a faster response but when officers respond we learn that wasn't the case," Becker said.

This is a dangerous way to get officers to respond to a call, said Becker.

"When officers get called out to a call where someone says there is a gun or weapon, the officers' mind set is different than that of another call," he said.

Rose said officers and deputies have to take each call as a potentially real crime.

"We take the caller's statements seriously and acting in good faith and respond accordingly," she said. "Unfortunately, (those making false reports don't take into account) the real emergencies that they may be taking resources from."